The Halloween Kids (TV series)
The Halloween Kids is a Canadian TV series that aired from 2000-2003 on Global. It was created by and based on the books by Elliot Strange and developed by Strange, Owen Emerson and Josef Gabor. Production The Halloween Kids was produced by Alliance Atlantis, Artemis Entertainment and Gecko Studios, in association with Vantage Animation and Le Bombe Numérique Produktioun. It was funded by The Movie Network, Superchannel (later Movie Central) and Canwest Global Communications. The pilot was completed in 1999 but didn't air until 2000, with ensuing episodes being made throughout early-2001 and airing late into the year. At the time the show was made, Strange was involved with a rights battle with Route 90 Publishing, the publisher of the book series the show was based on. Strange had only garnered a percentage of the ownership back from Route 90, having been put into debt over the years. Since Route 90's ownership only extended to the United States, Strange felt it was necessary to keep the show in Canada. Strange would later secure the rights to his works from Route 90 in 2003 through Vantage Capitol. Vantage would acquire the rights to the show from its other backers and Strange would later gain the rights to the show after he was made the head of their production division. Domestically, the show was produced in Ontario and British Columbia through Gecko Studios and Vantage Animation respectively. Internationally, the show was produced in France through Le Bombe Numerique Produktioun. Plot The show is set in the fictional town of Belbury, a suburban community set in Alberta. Of the residents are the Slaatskies, a family who're divided on social issues and are making heads of a coup their father took part in years ago. Boris, the father, is one of three men to stand by what he did, while his wife Hanneke is a member of a committee that antagonizes people like him. It primarily focuses on one of their daughters, Jupiter, an outsider who tries to make the most of her social status against her school's four groups, the Weirdos (a group with supernatural powers), the Elites (of the school's more influential and calculating students), and Julie's gang (a team of bullies which include Jupiter's sister Selma.) The focus sometimes goes to one of the four groups, though it typically focuses on Belbury's neighborhood watch group who have it out for Boris' old team. Structure Episodes feature a cold open and an epilogue. Most of the time they're used to establish the plot and wrap up any loose ends, other times they're played for laughs. In rare instances, the episode engages in what they call a break, where they show something that breaks the flow of the episode but mostly keeps with the plot, quickly establishing something important, often when the main plot comes out shorter than expected. These tend to have different animation styles and serve as guest spots for different studios. Characters * Jupiter Slaatsky (Andrea Libman): Jupiter is a white-haired bubbly girl who for years found it difficult to express herself due to her father's attitude. She had an inferiority complex and felt uninterested in trying to make a name for herself. For years she had held back feelings of anxiety, resentment and malevolence toward Boris and Suzy, which manifested into a dark form that overcame her and turned her into a monster, in Suziopath. Jupiter is revealed to be a vessel for one of the spirits from the Raven Stakes' coup, leading to her white hair (akin to Suzy being possessed by a corrupt spirit and getting black hair.) Early in the first season, Jupiter had a running gag where she had a bizarre obsession with blue jeans. Affiliated with the Weirdos * Selma Slaatsky (Janyse Jaud): Selma takes after her father, and tends to be abrasive and crude, inhibiting her from making friends. This reflects on her school life, where she tends to bully most of her female peers. Selma is into sports that mainly involve the use of rackets, specifically tennis, badminton and lacrosse, plus she has a hefty appetite. She has a dysfunctional relationship with Jupiter and tends to bully her; this is mainly out of jealousy for the fact that Jupiter is hardly affected by the mostly dysfunctional nature of their parents. Deep down, Selma was troubled and felt too scared to express her true feelings. Over the course of the series, she opens up and even makes peace with Jupiter. Affiliated with Julie's gang. * Boris Slaatsky (Long John Baldry): Hanneke's husband and the father of Selma and Jupiter. Boris is a Russian immigrant, and a bumbling idiot who has seemingly given up on life. His mindset was spurred by encounters during the Red Scare, where every attempt at him trying to help was deterred by everyone's paranoia at the time. This, along with his strong admiration for Lyndon B. Johnson inspiring him to proceed with the fatal coup further put a strain on his mind and he found it difficult to get over. Unlike Lars and Luther who have been driven to harsh extremes due to constant alienation, Boris takes this with good humor and is willing to let his wife be with the committee, as is allowing the kids to make their own decisions (though this is often misconstrued as gross negligence.) After hitting a mental crossroad near the anniversary of the coup, Boris finds the will to stand up against his former friends, succeeding in mending the bond with his family. At the end of the series, Boris goes to apply for a citizenship, with Burt giving him incriminating info to use as blackmail for easy clearance. * Hanneke Slaatsky (nee Demke) (Terri Hawkes): Boris' wife. Hanneke clashes heavily with her husband and is not ashamed of it. He had viewed her lowly for years, seeing her as a means to an end, and as a result she became apathetic to their marriage. She has cheated on him with Belbury's single males to maintain a semblance of sanity. When she's not with Boris, she is more comfortable with being herself, as in a partier and a sports fan. She works at a news station, though the extent of that job has never been revealed, she's firmly established to be the source of the family's income. From Safford, Arizona. Affiliated with the Neighborhood Committee. The Weirdos The Weirdos are a gang of children encompassing multiple personalities and means of handling situations. They're generally ostracized by others, not out of malicious intentions but fear of getting harmed by them. Jupiter had grown close to them and wound up joining them. They were virtually unchanged from their book counterparts. *'Alison Meeks (Maryke Hendrikse):' The leader. Alison is a spunky talkative girl and the leader of the Halloween Kids. She is knowledgeable on everything obscure or irrelevant to what's currently happening, with a varying payoff. Since she was the first to discover the club's first monster, she had leeway in becoming their leader. While generally optimistic, Alison also tends to be somewhat moody and short-tempered. She also tends to be somewhat selfish whenever an opportunity comes for her to gain power, leading to people turning against her, even Colleen. She wears shades frequently, done to cover her disfigured set of eyes which she believed was caused by a rare eye disorder, but it was caused by a pact her family made with the Headless Inspectre to preserve their lives, leading to disfigurement on their next born child as a permanent reminder to never invoke his wrath. Alison was born in Dover-Foxcroft, Maine. *'Colleen Dixon (Jillian Michaels):' Colleen is Alison's best friend. Colleen is a somewhat shy girl who takes on a deadpan persona when she's forced to interact with others. Colleen stuck with Alison because the latter understood her better and is helping build her self-esteem. She wants to become a stronger individual and learn to fight her own battles in order to be like her parents. Colleen is typically the voice of reason or one who'd rather gawk at certain things, but she tends to be just as bad, often worse than Alison when she loses control. Colleen's from Denver, Colorado. *'Sam Proctor (Julie Lemieux):' A girl who's into magic and planting and is also a bookworm. It's revealed that she's a witch, but she keeps it under wraps so she could make friends easier and maintain a normal life. Sam is very cynical, and tends to be the first to criticize potentially bad ideas, and she also has low patience. She is also very calm, but is easily provoked and merciless when angered. She found herself unwilling to loosen up since previous attempts led to humiliation. In One-two Skadoo, it's revealed that for a time she had been the youngest member of their team. *'Jerry Sandoval (Ian James Corlett):' The only boy in the group. Jerry is a wide-eyed cowardly boy, and lacking in any major powers. As a result, he is often used as bait for most missions or as a sacrifice when dealing with authority figures. This seemingly does little to phase him, and he has generally accepted his place in the group. Jerry is often used for comedic relief in more serious episodes. *'Jenny Sandoval (Sarah Gadon):' An alien girl who was sent to Earth by her family due to miscommunication between them and their overlord. She landed in Belbury and befriended Jerry, who was the only human who wasn't afraid of her. She is taken in by Ned and treated as if he was her own. Because of her lack of experience on Earth, Jenny comes off as somewhat naive and may engage in acts normal to her, but too bizarre for everyone else. *'Becky Newton (Britt Irvin):' A girl who has the ability to turn into a werewolf, as well as the daughter of Laney. Becky ran away from home a few months prior to the start of the series and had a run-in with Victoria who turned her into a werewolf, though due to her change being brought on through DNA extraction, it was more of a mutation than a traditional affliction. Something of a wallflower, her shyness prevented her from making friends back then, so when she ran away nobody realized it. Becky is typically calm and quiet, only opening up to those she's close to, but is also easily angered. She develops a crush on Randall after he encouraged her to return to Belbury and face her mother. As a human, Becky has heightened senses and reflexes, but for fear of losing control, she rarely brings out her werewolf form. The Perrino Elites The Perrino Elites are a secret society, one of the most feared in Alison's school. They exist to provide a protection racket for the more dominant social groups, namely bullies (preferably bullies with higher intelligence than others), divas, jocks and those with professional connections. They would seek anyone who annoys them and punish them based on the extent of their misdeed. All members communicate through telepathy and assess the issue of the day. In the finale, we learn that the Elites are reincarnations of the spirits harmed in the coup, and the experience molded who they are now. * Francis Perrino (Catherine Disher): The leader of the Elites, best identified by her large head sporting a bulging vein (which is actually indicative of her telepathic abilities.) Francis is a ruthless individual who does whatever she could to maintain her reputation in Belbury Middle School. She directs her worst aspects toward those she hates in order to prevent any internal protest from her cohorts. Francis originally deemed The Halloween Kids as a threat and waited for a good opportunity to take them down, but after various instances of Alison helping her and her group, both reach a mutual understanding and become friends. * Ashley Yorke (Ashley Taylor): Ashley is a somewhat sociopathic child, taking joy in seeing obnoxious people suffer. She is willing to put down anyone who annoys her, regardless if said person is on good terms with her. As a result, she has very few friends and has no interest in making any new ones. Her hatred of obnoxious people appropriately stems from constant encounters with them growing up; this has even extended to her family, to the point she refuses to even share the same house with them, moving into her treehouse before getting taken in by Andy. The closest she has to friends are Andy due to their cynical behavior and Madison, though the latter seems to have been out of pride as Ashley managed to sedate her in Election Show. Her parents and upper relatives are her polar opposites, being obnoxiously optimistic and friendly, but vicious when questioned. * Fiona Kennedy (Chantal Strand): Francis' other friend. Fiona seems to lack mental stability, showing no reluctance to bring about cruel and unusual punishments to anyone who crosses Francis or any of the other elites. Also tends to act like a dog, something she does to get attention. She is revealed to be poor and lives in a trailer park. Fiona is from Mount Cory, Ohio. * Ruth Dinsdale (Tabitha St. Germain): Francis' second in command. Ruth was born in Laurel, Mississippi, but was soon abandoned by her parents in a swamp and raised by alligators, giving her bizarre facial features. Unlike most characters of her type, Ruth is not above calling out her superiors and tends to serve as Francis' conscious. *'Georgina Sutcliffe (Tabitha St. Germain):' The school diva. Georgina originally hailed from Yorkshire and was a sheltered, boarding school attendee from a well-off family until they lost ownership of the school. They moved to New Brunswick to start a new life and their daughter would be forced to attend public school. Georgina is a girly-girl, slightly naive due to her still-developing grip on the middle-class town and was nasty for a while, but slowly changed throughout the series. Georgina is a curious girl who isn't afraid to get dirty every now and again, and has a bizarre fondness for gross things. This helped her become friends with Jenny, who considers most gross things on Earth a delicacy, as well as Sam who's work revolves around gross things. A running gag throughout the series is that Georgina always gets hit in the head by a ball. *'Randall Bench (Richard Ian Cox):' A smooth-talking boy who's obsessed with money. Randall is a perfectionist who intends to earn everything through hard work and honesty, but there're times he abandons those principals for a stronger payout. He does work for hire, but has a steady job as a sweeper and a delivery boy. He also has a love interest in Becky, whom he indirectly helped redeem herself. Randall was born in Staten Island, New York. It's said that Randall's characterization is an amalgamation of Billy Joel and Frank Sinatra, especially the former. * Taylor Swenson (Nicole Oliver): The most popular student at Belbury Middle School. True to her title, Taylor is somewhat of a diva, though unlike most divas, she is more conservative and tends to strike people she feels deserve ridicule. She doesn't antagonize Alison and her friends (perhaps out of fear for angering those with supernatural powers) and is only involved with the Elites due to prior association with most of the members. She is the head of a subchapter in the Elites, the Hive, which consist of those similar to her. * Briana Waloski (Tabitha St. Germain): Daughter of Burt and Jade. Unlike her parents, Briana is wrapped up in her wealth and is quick to put lower class individuals down. Her behavior is due to insecurity; she had been bullied before her parents became rich. Her insults are thinly-veiled cries for friendship, though thankfully she was able to make connections with the Elites. Julie's Gang A team of bullies with a rigid moral compass. These bullies prefer to maintain order in the school and are opposed to those who tease and attack others without provocation. This wasn't the case until Julie became the leader and turned them to a more noble cause. * Julie Mahoney (Kathleen Barr): A punk girl who often takes the role of a contrarian. She used to be a prominent street rat until she got the chance to turn her life around. Julie holds a strong moral compass and sticks up for much weaker individuals, though she tends to be very sarcastic to most people she isn't fond of. Julie used to be a typical girly girl, but after breaking due to years of mockery, devolved to he current phase and made it her own. * Victor Fulton (Peter Oldring): A toady boy with a unibrow and buck teeth. He's a dealer and a prankster who only acts when he knows he could get away with it. He often goes into things without thinking and tends to throw his friends into danger to save himself from any trouble. Other times, if the situation seems hopeless, Victor would do anything to get out of it. * Thaddeus "Corky" Winthrop: '''A timid mute boy who is best identified by the fact that he wears a bicycle helmet almost all of the time. While the point of ridicule, the helmet seems to be hiding Corky's weirdest trait, though some believe it's meant to cover a soft spot. Everyone refers to Corky by his actual name, Thaddeus, but only in Julie's circle do they call him Corky, and until Unusual Suspects, they didn't know what his actual name was. * '''Mack MacPheran (Chiara Zanni): A fizzy jock and a fitness fanatic. Mack is close to Julie, with the latter even being trained by her. Both are seen together the most compared to other members of the group, with Jupiter coming to a close second. Mack is also somewhat squeamish when it comes to more dire situations and doesn't think through what she says, and tends to speak in lingo. Mack is Julie's oldest friend, with the relationship extending to her mother (Muriel) and Dakota. * Angela Asbrew (Stephanie Morgenstern): Kerry’s niece. Angela is a bit of a loner and generally anti-social. This was brought on by a troubled home life. She left her parents after they showed indifference to when she got separated from them and was sent to live with Kerry via a court order. Kerry wasn't any better at raising her, thanks to his mental issues, and it worsened her own bad aspects. Angela is insecure and lacks self-esteem. Angela lacks the initiative to go out and make friends, save for Selma since she shares her poor social skills. She suffers from chronic nosebleeds which typically occur when she's flustered. Among her interests are playing the piano and flying kites. * Megan Chavari (Vanessa Morley): A girl who's best identified by her buck teeth and trucker cap. She's passive aggressive and insecure, losing her cool when people make fun of her. Megan has trouble concentrating and it's suggested that she has some kind of learning disability, though this was hardly explored. She has a crush on Jerry, but he doesn't respond well to her advances as she chooses an aggressive approach. *'Dante Ahrens (Tony Sampson):' A bully of a mild nature. Dante doesn't seek to harm anyone unless they provoke him, or if someone hires him to. Over the course of the series, Dante attempts to better himself after feeling out of sync with his social status. He develops a crush on Julie and the two get together in the second season. Dante's appearance is based after Chevelle vocalist Pete Loeffler. *'Clifford (Brian Drummond):' A heavyset bully who's the muscle of the entire group. Clifford tends to bully other people on his own volition, but he claims it's not out of malicious desire, but rather for entertainment. He's more distant from the group and only seems to act with them on a business basis, and it's implied he suffers from some form of social anxiety. *'Monique Broderick (Stacey DePass):' She is strangely idolized for her mysterious visage, something that irritates her, though she takes the high road and says nothing about it. Truthfully, she is very shy and finds it hard to hold one on one conversations. She enjoys listening to music and is mostly around for the ride. The Raven Stakes A now retired supernatural investigation team. They grew apart following a devastating attack on what turned out to be innocent spirits who wanted to aid the Stakes. They've been ostracized by the neighborhood for their efforts, with some showing no remorse for their actions, with some only joining for perks rather than genuine interest. Most members deserted the Stakes, with the remaining ones getting killed off in the finale. Each had tattoos to symbolize their allegiance to the group. Former members like Bob, Kerry and Cosmo had theirs burned off by the Committee after switching their allegiance, while Boris merely scraped the skin where his was given. * Kerry Hubbard (Stephen Ouimette): Angela's uncle and a realtor. Kerry seems to lack mental stability, often quick to go into extremes if no one's around to keep him in line. His obsession with integrity puts him at odds with Angela, thanks to her more rebellious nature. Kerry was once married to Hope Chapley, through a shotgun marriage, but he broke up with her due to her being more unhinged than him. The root of Kerry's mental problems has never been identified, though it's believed he suffers from Bipolar Disorder. Kerry had attempted to remain with the Stakes, but he gradually grew apart from them and defected to the Committee, especially after Lars teased him more aggressively. Kerry's Jewish and it's established in Die-Section. Kerry's from Plymouth, Indiana. * Cosmo Kadic (Roger Dunn): A principal at Belbury Middle School. Cosmo is prideful and quick to get instigated when challenged. Beyond his closest friends and family, he seemingly cares little about the well-being of others, shown by him tormenting numerous students whilst he was in college. He also seems to use his job as principal to let out his more sociopathic tendencies, all to enforce his role as principal. The means he goes to do this is a reason why numerous supernatural beings attend the school, and also why he and Ms. Chapley are the only constant members of the faculty. In spite of his demeanor, he doesn't actively hate anyone unless they antagonize him. Cosmo's demeanor stems from the death of his wife and his reluctance to start a new relationship. He had a fierce rivalry with Burt in the first episode, but wound up joining the committee with Bob and Kerry, noting the declining stability of the stakes and sharing an equal hatred for obnoxious people. He and Lynn get together in the second season and elope. From Great Falls, Montana. * Lars Perrino (Andrew Kavadas): Francis' father and the current successor to the Perrino estate. Lars was one of three people who used the Stakes for his own advantage and had no remorse for the coup. Lars and Luther were pigs who only fought monsters to get with women and was a generally terrible person. As an adult, Lars is quick to try and rope his family into doing his work so he could pursue girls, and loses it when challenged, notably as he ran a tire shop which he hardly maintained and used to take advantage of customers, while showing no grip on how to do the work himself. He was previously the head of the Committee until Burt ran against him and swept everyone to his side, Lars had never been able to get over it and exploited the government to steal one of Burt's houses and gain access to most of his money, only to lose it by the end of the first season. Lars loses his business and sanity, especially after getting traumatized by seeing his father become a born again Christian. He attempted suicide, but his method to do so only rotted his body, him being reduced to a sentient zombie by the finale. He is ultimately killed at the end, though we're led to believe it was his wish. * Ned Sandoval (Hiro Kanagawa): Jerry and Jenny's father. Ned is a generally weird man, having a strong obsession with aliens and doing various unorthodox things when not in the company of others. He often refers to everything as "fascinating", paying no mind to what's happening to or around him. As a result of his behavior he's often left out of various activities and his wife is more favored than him. Ned seemed to have been little more than a punching bag or a meat shield to the Stakes, and he's often the butt of many jokes. * Bob Dixon (Howard Jerome): The team's brawn, and Colleen's father. For a time, he was the strongest man in Belbury, best known for his dexterity and better resistance to pain. This was compromised when he was involved in a car accident a year after the Stakes disbanded, breaking his back and both of his ankles in the process. Years of recovery rendered him out of shape and he walks with the aid of a cane. Beforehand, he hated the Stakes as he was bulled frequently by Lars and Boris beforehand and had his reputation ruined by them so he'd be forced to work with them. During a prank, he sold them out and promptly defected to the Committee's side, being the first of the group to do so. Bob came from Anderson, Missouri and was often the victim of teasing due to him being Jewish in one of the more prominent parts of the Bible Belt, and as a result he found it hard to truly trust anyone, leading to a mild sense of contempt with the world. His wife Enid and daughter Colleen, along with most members of the committee are exceptions as they share similar views to him. Bob is envisioned as a "Jewish Archie Bunker." Neighborhood Committee Basically rivals to the Raven Stakes. Hurt over the latter's final coup, they're quick to assume the Stakes would return to more violent ways, which in turn would affect the town. The committee has access to a dimension, home to a giant gecko monster with whom he's fed the bodies of those that have harmed Belbury. On the surface, the committee is greatly opposed to obnoxious people and resort to twisted means to preserve sensibility, heavily targeting Lars and Luther. * Burton Waloski (Richard Newman): A billionare who's the leader of the committee. Contrary to the archetype, Burton is a very generous man, who's willing to help lower class individuals. He has a level of animosity toward the Stakes; he doesn't like Cosmo for his pride and propensity to attack his financial class, he's more than aware of Kerry's mental instability, he's weirded out by Ned and Lars' family had targeted the Waloskis in the past. Nevertheless, he and the Stakes tend to find solidarity when their neighborhood is at risk. From Wahpeton, North Dakota. * Jade Waloski (Linda Ballantyne): Burton's wife. Seemingly poised as a trophy wife, Jade is actually a very intelligent woman, being the only one in the neighborhood to graduate with a degree, though she was never able to find a career in her field that made her happy. Jade is a timid and frail hypochondriac who is often seen with her husband and is reluctant to stand on her own. From Rapid City, South Dakota. * Victoria Meeks (Saffron Henderson): Alison's biological mother and Amber's sister. Unlike the latter, Victoria was generally carefree and girly. She got involved with a classmate who was studying lycanthropy, and it led to her slowly becoming a werewolf after a series of tests. They affected Victoria's personality, causing a rift between her and Amber. Victoria ran away and got involved with Richard (before he became Sorrow.) Following Richard's death, Victoria became Alison's sole guardian before she lost her mind and gave in to her more primal desires. Alison and Victoria are reunited in New Frontfears and she returns to normal, seeking to reconcile with the former and Amber. As kids, she and Amber had something of a rivalry, it still being held. * Amber Meeks (Patricia Drake): Alison's aunt and current guardian, as well as Victoria's sister and the mother of Linda, Yorba and Nixon. Opposite her sister, Amber's a bit more high strung and not as flexible as Victoria, though this doesn't completely overtake her personality. Amber cares deeply for her family, and tends to be very emotional. In the past, she was a rebellious girl, something that led to her and Victoria getting turned into werewolves, and Amber's still hurt by that. From Dover-Foxcroft, Maine. * Enid Dixon (Linda Kash): Colleen's mother. Basically Bob's equal, Enid had been a victim of bullying due to her height along with a rumor of her supposedly having a green nipple, and she had also been a victim of religion-related bullying as she came from a state within the bible belt. While Enid often goes against Bob's means of parenting most of the time, she is still strict and mostly old-fashioned. She reportedly started the "silent sixteen" movement for people unwilling to take part in political affairs. Enid is from Batesville, Arkansas. * Majel Sandoval (Nicole Oliver): Ned's wife. Contrary to her more eccentric husband, Majel is neurotic and seemingly depressed. Compared to other couples, she is desperate to get rid of her husband, to the point she is willing to let him go into space for some alone time (A Star Too Far). She is more favored than her husband due to her neighbors being equally cynical. Beyond her nature, she finds reprieve in shoegaze music and science-fiction. Majel seems to favor Jenny more than Jerry, vice versa with her husband. From Greeley, Colorado. * Henrietta "Hen" Perrino (Sally Cahill): Lars' wife and Francis' mother. Hen is a cold and calculating woman who seeks to get her way by any means necessary. Hen has an inferiority complex, brought on by an otherwise critical home-life, and has picked up some of those habits into adulthood. She was Lars' childhood bully, but was forced to get together with him due to their parents believing that she had a crush on him. Their relationship is mostly troubled, with Lars' behavior reminding her too much of her own father. Her name is actually a new identity, for after her father forced her to take a job that prevented her from getting a more preferable one, she faked her death and fled home. Hen is Majel's best friend, the two of them knew each other from high school through to college and occasionally get together when the committee isn't up, plus Majel is the only one who knows Hen better than anyone else, even her family. From Ardmore, Oklahoma. * Delta Meeks (Ellen Ray Hennessy): Victoria and Amber's mother, and Alison, Linda, Yorba and Nixon's grandmother. Delta used to work as an English teacher before she was goaded into an early retirement. Unlike the rest of her family, she had remained in her hometown until Three of the Dog Women, and from there she moved to Belbury permanently. Delta is a friendly woman who prefers to approach every issue with caution, only breaking that principal when driven to the edge. * Dakota Mahoney (Jayne Eastwood): Delta's daughter and Artemis and Julie's mother. Dakota is a pro-wrestler who seems to be more obsessed with her body image than Enid, with the two serving as friendly rivals. Dakota tends to be rough and is prone to angry outbursts, and due to her line of work she is unable to always be there for her family, but whenever a crisis occurs, she's willing to drop everything to help. Dakota is part Scottish and part Irish. From Merrill, Wisconsin. * Lynn Newton (Kathleen Laskey): A former evangelist and a pastor at Belbury's local church. She is one of the more frail parts of the group, second to Jade, but it doesn't prevent her from speaking her mind. Lynn has an obsession with stripes and always has a wide-eyed look. She had an estranged husband who got killed years ago and she had trouble finding a new husband, later getting together with Cosmo who faced the same situation. From Riverside, Iowa. * Andy Hammond (Cedric Smith): An uppity man who rarely holds back when it comes to criticizing people. Andy is generally anti-social, which heavily affected his work life because of his penchant to snap. His attitude enabled him to earn a relationship with Chris, later Autumn and Martha when they met. In spite of his demeanor, he could surprisingly be reasoned with once someone talks to him long enough, and he's seemingly not very bright, as he tends to go against his own social doctrines by accident. His poor depiction of the world stems from his introverted nature, and as a result he reacts to things differently than anyone normally would. Andy holds no contempt toward anyone, save for those he deems to be rotten by nature. Andy grew up in Lander, Wyoming. * Mike Stearns (Gene Mack): A sour man and a frequent complainer. In the books, he was a frequent critic of several African American movements, particularly the Black Panthers; this was toned down for the series, but allusions still suffice. Compared to people like Martha and Andy, Mike isn't as misanthropic as them; while Andy and Martha merely comment on something negatively knowing full well they can't do anything about it, Mike is more vocal about his dissatisfaction, to the annoyance of the otherwise silent circle he's in. Mike's from Roswell, New Mexico. * Chris Hancock (Jamie Watson): A downbeat man. Chris tends to be the middleman in his circle, tending to try and stop any confrontation with a quick comment. Chris suffers from depression, something the others have caught on to and they attempt to keep their interactions leveled to avoid setting him off. Unlike Andy or Martha, Chris is an introvert by choice. He was unable to maintain lasting relationships and had a very bad relationship with his father, along with some poorly decided career choices where he had to put up with condescending superiors. That aspect gave him a complex where he immediately rebuffs anyone who's quick to criticize (Andy's an exception to this, possibly because Chris knows Andy does it by nature.) Chris grew up in Eureka, Nevada and works at an electronics store. * Montgomery Proctor (David Hemblen): Sam's father, and a warlock. Monte looks to be in his forties, but it's implied that he's immortal and has lived for several thousand years. Howard suffers from narcolepsy, and is a bit of a milquetoast, not helped by his wife. Unlike her, Monte isn't as wrapped in materialism as Zelda and is more involved in the lives of others in the neighborhood. In spite of his upbringing, Monte no longer has any powers of his own, at least in a major sense; he gave his up to bring Sam back to life after Zelda's ignorance led to the former drowning. In spite of this, Monte remained mostly loyal to Zelda and was oblivious to her infidelity, though he catches onto this near the end of the first season. Monte's from West Bridgewater, Massachusetts. * Muriel MacPheran (Kathleen Barr): Mack's mother. Muriel is a tomboyish woman who has fought in the Vietnam War (disguised as a man), took up work as a fisherman and rode with a motorcycle gang, before getting done in by a one-night stand with a man, leading to an unexpected pregnancy. She settled in Belbury and primarily hangs out with Dakota. Beyond her rough exterior, Muriel is a caring mother who gets along well with her kids and has become something of a godmother to the Dallows. From Howell, Michigan. The Teens This is mainly used to note characters that are related to the protagonists. * Mercury MacPheran (Bryn McAuley): Mack's eldest sister. Mercury is vanity laden and vain, a harsh contrast to her more tomboyish mother and sister. Although, she greatly opposes others like her who're more obnoxious over looks, and tends to bully said individuals. Mercury is also very insecure and unable to handle jokes done at her expense. She is friends with Adelaide and Linda. * Yorba and Nixon Meeks (Alyson Court and Chuck Campbell respectively): Twin siblings who’re Alison's cousins and Amber’s children. Yorba's a geeky goth girl and is more extroverted compared to Nixon. Yorba is also very naive and emotional, to the point some people make fun of her for it. Yorba became goth to be closer to her brother, but she seems to embrace the fashion more than the other aspects of goth culture. Nixon is more into goth culture than Yorba, and is also into horror. He tends to be brutally honest and spiteful, though only Yorba seems to be receptive to the intentions behind this. Typically the level headed one of the two, the roles tend to reverse in the midst of supernatural circumstances. * Artemis Mahoney (Megan Fahlenbock): Julie's older sister, the middle child of the family. Artemis is a street-wise individual who shares a similar moralistic view to Julie. She also tends to be naive, going along with anything no matter how insane it is. She is picky about who she wants to follow, and is quick to chastise anyone she suspects of being fake. Artemis is friends with Yorba, her equivalent. * Adelaide Mahoney (Stacey DePass): The eldest daughter in the Dallows. Adelaide has psychic powers, which she keeps secret and uses to keep tabs on those she's against. She has a typical love/hate relationship with Artemis and Julie, namely due to differing personalities. In spite of this, Adelaide does care for her family, and her nature seems to be due to her wanting to preserve order in the house. Adelaide is friends with Mercury and Linda, and she tends to use the latter to cover for her. * Linda Meeks (Kelly Sheridan): Amber's eldest daughter. Linda is an acne-riddled sci-fi geek who makes up for her lower social status by being more headstrong than her compatriots. She is often present in brief visual gags where she's in a relationship with a slacker, Hugh (Yannick Bisson) and both engage in lewd acts. Aside from that, she is friends with Adelaide, and is often used to cover for the latter. Antagonists * Headless Inspectre (Eugene Levy): The Headless Inspectre is the ghost of Blaine Matson, a renowned health inspector from the 1950s. He was killed in 1971 by a vengeful butcher after Blaine gave him a poor review. Prior to this, he practiced heavily in black magic to ensure that he would maintain power and return to humanity in some form were anything to happen to him. Because of this, his severed head became cursed and his spirit roamed free until the Raven Stakes imprisoned it in a book, which Suzy freed him from. Blaine's head was buried beneath an oak tree set on the highest point in Belbury. To whomever reunites his head with his body, he will become their servant, only for the reverse to happen. The Headless Inspectre is one of the Raven Stakes' more notable enemies, though he hates them more due to their venemous hatred for spirits and wanting to exploit public paranoia. He had since simmered down and willingly aided the Halloween Kids in taking down Suzy. * Suzy Hellman (Catherine Disher): The prime antagonist. She's a cousin to the Slaatskies, a fact she kept under wraps to preserve her social image. Suzy seems to hate anyone that she deems weird or are a blight on her visions for wealth and power, prompting her to claim no association to people of smaller social standings and even openly attacking her former friends Elizabeth and Dolly. She is in constant denial over her place in the school's social hierarchy, believing herself to be above everyone when she is actually one of the most hated in her school, generally being deemed well out of sync with the rest of her peers, even the Hive. She'd say anything to get respect from others, in spite of hypocritically doing stuff that's against it. Lacking in sympathy, she blew off Elizabeth and Dolly, her only true friends and nearly killed Jupiter in a fight because she revealed Suzy's connection to the Slaatskies. She later unleashes the Headless Inspectre in an attempt to destroy Belbury and restart it in her own image, unaware of the curse where he would claim her soul soon after. She finds a way out of this however, and takes control of the Spectre's domain, only to get imprisoned in his tome and burned out of existence. * Zelda Proctor (Tabitha St. Germain): Sam's mother and the antagonist for the first season. The epitome of a bourgeois wife, Zelda is incredibly vein and pretentious. Her feelings are often put toward her husband and daughter, to the point they kicked her out of their house and forced her to live in a guest cottage. Having been raised in New York City, this led to conflicts with the suburbanites embodying the Neighborhood Committee. Zelda had always been against the Weirdos and has attempted to decimate the group by putting them through the same experience the Stakes went through, implied in Suziopath. In Stuffed on You, she cheats on Monte and Andy and Ashley for a time were the only ones who knew about it. She disappears after a failed attempt at destroying the committee, but resurfaces in One Two Skadoo, making no effort to properly reconcile with Monte. Sam icily renounces her and everyone cuts her out of their lives. Zelda is killed by Billy after being led to him by Burt and her spirit defects to the Headless Inspectre's side. * Billy: A mysterious gecko-like monster that inhabits a sand-based dimension. It's unknown where it came from or what it is, but it was known to be the first monster the Raven Stakes ever fought. The monster was kept in its dimension, accessible through the Perrino's house and previously used during their mafia days to dispose of those in debt to them (this being another factor for Lars' neuroticism.) Billy is first introduced in Over the Moon and Into the Gutter when Becky is clued in on his feeding period by Hen, and makes his first major appearance in Billy Billy is Gonna Gonna Go Kill Me when he breaks out to recover his offspring, only to get killed by the end. Other Prominent Characters * Elizabeth Yuzna and Dolly Kitrosser (Tracey Moore and Andrea Libman respectively): Suzy's former cronies and only legitimate friends. They were formally aligned with the Elites but betrayed them after getting manipulated by Suzy. Elizabeth is a film nerd while Dolly adds "totally" to every sentence. They stuck by Suzy no matter what she did, even though she openly makes fun of them, and it wasn't until the finale that they learned how she truly felt about them, and they sacrifice themselves to bring Suzy down. * Hope Chapley (Nicole Oliver): A haggard teacher at Belbury Middle School, and an occasional antagonist. Like Kerry, she enforces moralism, but to a far grander, often sinister extent, to the point she's willing to let people die just to teach them a lesson. She was formally married to Kerry (apparently done through a shotgun marriage), but he wound up leaving her. In spite of her profession, Hope vehemently hates children, especially her class, directing it the most to Julie and her friends to the point she tries to get them expelled with her attempts either failing to go anywhere or backfiring when they strike back against her. Her efforts led to her getting fired or her pay getting docked, but she always returns by the start of the next episode. Beyond teaching, Ms. Chapley also does maintenance work around the school. It's implied that she rarely leaves the school, but the circumstances behind this were never confirmed. * Daphne Kadic: Cosmo's estranged wife. She is mentioned frequently in each episode but has never been seen. Details on her life were revealed throughout the series from her childhood to her adult years. As a kid, Daphne was a tomboyish girl who loved flowers and often picked on Cosmo. When she turned 25 she left to join the army but was sent out of the battlefield due to her losing her hand in combat. She took a job as a waitress at a diner and reunited with Cosmo, eventually marrying him. Daphne is killed a month prior to the pilot telefilm and it heavily affected Cosmo since then. Episodes Pilot Season 1 Season 2 Reception The series initially received mixed reviews, with praise going toward the characters and stories but criticism going toward the glorification of anti-social behavior. Overtime, the show has garnered a cult following with teens and young adults. Merchandising Strange was notable for being against releasing merchandise based on the show, refusing to allow any to be made without his approval. This was perhaps done out of fear of litigation from Route 90 with whom he was still involved in a copyright battle with, though perhaps he felt that the show wasn't merchandiser friendly. He did relent on his disapproval, provided the show was successful enough in certain territories to warrant merchandise. Books Scholastic published book adaptations for most episodes of the series. The books were illustrated by Strange and Barry Cohn, a storyboard artist for the show. They later produced original stories in a six book series. Strange had no direct involvement in these beyond giving final approval, and this proved to be the only merchandising area Strange was comfortable with, as he was an advocate for encouraging more kids to read. Video Games Two games based on the show were released. The first was The Belbury Files, developed by Hypnotix and published by Simon & Schuster Interactive, released five months before the pilot aired in 2000. It serves as a prequel to the pilot and features Jupiter and her family's encouters in Belbury for the first time, exploring various rumors and myths. It was briefly released in the US, but it got pulled due to threat of a lawsuit by Route 90. Another game, The Halloween Kids: Royce Rides Again, was released in 2002, developed by Digital Illusions CE and published by TDK Mediactive for the GameCube and PlayStation 2. It was only released in Europe and it's believed that it uses a similar engine to that in DICE's previous game Shrek Extra Large. Strange had been mostly critical of the game, feeling that the show wouldn't translate well to a 3D platformer, though he was more accepting of the exploration aspect. Other Small figurines modeled after characters on the show were released in France, Belgium and Luxembourg. Posters featuring the characters had also been released and were made available on the show's website. International The show has aired on 2x2 in Russia, Trouble in the United Kingdom, Locomotion in Latin America and Ego in Israel (though the latter was edited to cut out scenes and imagery that'd be deemed anti-Semitic.) Category:Fake TV Shows Category:Canadian TV series Category:American TV Series Category:English-language shows Category:Fake TV Shows that air on Real Channels